


Aos Sí

by ArtJim (AniMonster)



Series: Borrower of Brighton [2]
Category: jacksepticeye
Genre: G/T, Gen, TINY - Freeform, borrower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-25
Updated: 2018-05-25
Packaged: 2019-05-13 12:53:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 13,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14749238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AniMonster/pseuds/ArtJim
Summary: After the run in with Anti, Ani hadn't realized she was avoiding Seán until Signe mentioned it. She intended to heal their friendship after a week with Signe at a family reunion, but Fate had other plans. Now, she's heading back to America, with one very worried YouTuber.





	1. Prologue

_"No, please!" I cried, trying to scramble away on my broken leg. It's high pitched giggle made my skin crawl. It easily caught my good leg and dragged me back, not even bothering to lift me as I futilely groped at the wood. It loomed over me, the shadow stretching out before me. I felt it lay its head next to me, daring me to stare back. The air glitched around us, the green haze all I could feel._

_"_ _Ç'm͘o̴ņ,̧love̷,̡_ _d̡on͡'t̨c̴ha_ _w҉an͜t͜_ _t҉o_ _͢_ _se̡e_ _m̸e͝ag͞ain_ _?"_

_I shook my head, the strained voice ringing in my ears. It started to lift me by the unbroken leg. I close my eyes tight, refusing. Its fingers start to press down hardon my leg._

" _L̕o͜ok.A̷t̵.̵ Me,_ _" it hissed. Shuddering, unable to resist, my eyes slowly opened..._

_To see a brilliant blue eye staring back._

I woke in a cold sweat. Cloth surrounded me, gently rising and falling to someone's breathing.

Signe's breathing. And humming. And then she stopped.

"Hey, you awake?"

I poked my head out of the hammock she had made for me and met the sight of her hands against a sketchbook, paused in the coloring of Sam, the little septic eye Seán used as his icon. After a non-committal noise, I sank back into the hammock, just listening to her breathing for a moment.

"Nightmares again?" she asked quietly. I didn't answer. She knew it already. "I don't think avoiding him is going to help."

"I--I can't--"

"I know. Anti is..." She trailed off, a tilt in her voice that felt so familiar. I peered out from my cloth hide away. Signe was rubbing her wrist as she continued. "He's a demon, or might as well be. But ya'gotta get Seán back to deal with Anti."

"...What did he do to you?" I asked before realizing I probably shouldn't. Signe's chest shifted slightly as she chuckled.

"Tried to convince me Seán wasn't coming back." She rolled up her sleeve a little. There was a bit of a discoloration on her wrist. "Thought he could just toss me around a bit. Did you know Seán's ticklish?" I hesitated. Then looked up at her, a little confused. She offered me a wide grin. "Fastest way I've ever been able to deal with that jerk was to get him laughing. Seán has an easier time dealing with him when Anti's distracted."

" _You tickle him!?_ "

I just stared baffled as Signe nodded. "Of course, that's all assuming that Anti shows up at all. Seán's gotten really good at keepin' his tantrums at bay." Her face fell a little. "It shouldn't have happened to you."

My arm pulsed at the memory. My little hammock jostled when Signe shook her thoughts.

"But really. I think you should spend more time with just you and Seán. It helped me through the nightmares the first few times, before I could deal with Anti on my own."

We both fell silent after that, the only sound in the room Signe's quiet coloring.


	2. The Wrong Trip

I was just people watching from a shelf. I didn't have much to pack, just clothes. Everything else I grabbed along the way. I suppose it's one of the benefits of being a Borrower. Meanwhile, Signe and Seán were running around trying to remember if they had everything.

Signe was about to spend a week with her family. Seán was about to head to America for a week to visit friends and go to PAX. I planned on joining Signe, since they didn't want to leave too much food in the house when no one was around. Seán was a little panicked, as his Uber driver was late. I had gone into a daze of boredom.

So when the car let out the loudest honk I'd ever heard, it wasn't a surprise I lost all sense of balance. I plummeted off the shelf to the desk below, that held both Seán and Signe's carry ons. And let's face it. This wouldn't be a story if I had landed in Signe's.

Sure enough, away in a side pocket of the backpack, I barely started to recover from my fall before being thrown around as Seán grabbed his bag and ran out the door. My head was swimming and started to pound as the car pulled out to head to the airport. Any noise I made was drowned out by the car's engine, and I couldn't risk the driver hearing me shout.

I peeked over the edge of the pocket. Seán had put the bag between his feet on the floor of the car and was absorbed in his phone. (Of course he was.) Then, something made him pause and go a tad more pale. He glanced away from his phone.

Directly at me.

He spat a silent curse, looking desperately lost.

"Everything alright?"

The driver's question made us both jump, and I was quick to nod. Seán hesitated, then looked back up. "Yeah, just a weird post on Twitter."

"Ugh, yeah, I know how that goes. Which terminal?"

I sunk back into the pocket. Well, Signe said I needed to spend more time with him. Though I don't think this was how either of us intended for that to happen.

I wasn't sure what he was planning. While I would probably get through security just fine in his backpack, he still had a lot of other things to do. There was too much noise everywhere to really determine what he was doing. So I waited. Eventually, his erratic movements slowed and stopped.

"Ani?"

His whisper only broke through the din thanks to how close he had the bag to himself. Figuring he had gone off to the side somewhere, I poked my head out. Grey metal walls were close to him, encasing us in a personal box. He looked worried.

"Fuck, I don't have time to get you to Signe."

"And her flight leaves tomorrow," I finished, sighing a little. "We'll be fine."

He searched my face for a moment, then nodded. "Pocket or bag?"


	3. Wings

I opted for the pocket. Security was oddly easy to get through without hassle (though I wonder if it helped that the guard was a fan), and Seán stopped to grab a few snacks for me on our way to the gate. Then, he did something I didn't expect.

He upgraded himself to first class.

I was a tad confused, given in the time I had known him (even before I got discovered), he hadn't really gone extravagant on any of his travel expenses. Given I couldn't ask him, anyway, I didn't think much on it.

Everything was calm, even as the plane started to take off. Which, by the way, is a horrifying experience from inside someone's pocket. It was horrifying when I first got on one in someone's luggage, too. Though, thinking about it, the luggage was worse. At least Seán's jacket isn't shifting around as the engines zoom you into the sky.

As the plane began to settle in its flight, Seán tapped the side of his pocket to get my attention.

"Wanna see?"

His whisper was laced with excitement. I wasn't really sure what to make of it. We were on a plane with a bunch of other people, weren't we?

I hesitated.

"Promise, it's safe."

I took a deep breath, murmuring to myself, "He's never lied to you."

_Well_ _..._ _e҉̡͟x̨͘̕͠͡c͘͟҉e̢̛͜p̶̷̛͞t̸̢̧͞͝_

I shook the thought. Then flipped off the air next to me for good measure and climbed out onto his hand.

We were in a small room, with walls that didn't quite reach the top of the plane. A wooden-looking sliding door sat closed, opposite of curved windows that had the blinds down. I hopped onto a table that spread across most of the tiny room, staring up at a large screen TV.

"I thought planes were suppose to be cramped," I whispered, just loud enough to break the dull sound of the engines.

"Eh, not oversea flights. And, uh. This is--"

"First class," I noted. I wandered over to the window, hesitating. We were in the air. Really high up.

I kinda wanted to see it. I tried to pull up the shutter myself, but it was stuck fast.

"Behind you," Seán murmured, his hand appearing shortly after to lift it a little for me.

It. Was. Amazing. The city below us was starting to glow as the sun set. Lights sprinkled the ground like stars, headlights of cars lazily driving around.

It all looked so... small. Is this what my world would look like to them? The plane was still climbing, hadn't broken the clouds yet, and I saw people wandering the sidewalks. An odd feeling washed over me,and I think for once, I understood why Seán always seemed worried for me.

I shook it off and looked over my shoulder. "This is amaze... ing..." I furrowed my brow at his slightly pale face, which was buried in his phone. "Hey, Seán, is everything alright?"

"Hm? Yeah! Fine, don't worry 'bout me."

I peered at him. When his eyes glanced nervously to the window behind me, it clicked.

"You're scared of heights."

A sheepish look crossed his face. "Probably sounds really stupid to someone livin' their life with heights everywhere."

I shook my head and put all my weight into closing the shutter. "Not really. I mean, yeah, it'd be kinda silly for me to be scared of 'em, but honestly. First time my dad took me borrowing? Freaked me out how far away everything was!" I straightened out my shirt and wandered over to plop down in front of him. He seemed to relax now that the risk of looking outside was gone. "But I also learned pretty quick that if I fall right, I won't have to worry. I mean, yeah, I can break something if I fall  _horribly_ wrong, but nothin' to what you gotta deal with."

At first, I thought his relieved smile was due to my explanation. But something made me rethink it. Then, I realized. I hadn't sat down to talk with him since... well.

He quietly set down his phone. "But, yeah. I. I am. It's pretty dumb,right?"

I shrugged. "Probably dumber ones out there. Like fear of mice or something."

He let out a quiet laugh, seeming determined to keep his voice down.When he looked back, I couldn't help but grin.

For the first time since he rescued me from Ą̡n̷̷͟͢͜t҉͢i̕͞, I saw the smile reach his eyes.  
---


	4. Quiet Moments

I chose the pocket of his jacket as my bed. Mostly because it was the only way we both knew I'd be safe. He didn't really feel comfortable leaving me in his bag, and I wasn't about to risk anything happening if he happened to move drastically in his sleep.

Not that it mattered. _I_  couldn't get to sleep. And after an hour of trying, I just got up and went to the window. It took a lot of effort, but I managed to open it, just a crack. The ocean lay in expanse beyond the safety of the plane. It shimmered in the light, far smoother then I would have thought.

I don't know how long I sat there. I let my mind wander, thinking of Seán and Signe's home. Of my parents. Of the world and how much bigger it was after being Seen. I thought about those first few days, before ... it... showed up. How excited Seán had been to talk with me.

I heard a soft grunt behind me. I looked over to see Seán looking over his arm at me, a little blurry eyed.

"You should be asleep, aos sí."

I swayed a little to an unheard beat before asking, "Aos sí?"

He sat up and stretched with a yawn. "'s Irish fer People of the mounds. Faefolk." He grinned at my excitement. "Yeah, figured you'd like it. Didja sleep?"

I deflated a little and shook my head. "I can... feel way too much. I'm used to creaks and settling of the wood in walls, but this is... Something else."

He let out a quiet 'Oof', "Yer gunna jet lag somethin' fierce."

"...Jet lag?"

\--

Seán didn't fall back asleep. Instead, we spent a while talking about the trip, who he planned to meet. What I planned to do. It was rather inconclusive since neither of us knew how to handle the whole hotel thing. Signe had intended to be back at her parents' house, where I could have stayed in her childhood room.

While both awkward about it, we decided to just play it by ear. There wasn't much we could do at this point.

I think I passed out at some point. Mostly because I woke up in a much more familiar sensation of Seán's pocket gently swaying in cadence with his walk. Hooked on the edge of it was his thumb, which I tapped twice to let him know I was awake. After a moment, his hand slipped away, revealing the outside world.

The sheer amount of people made me retreat further into the pocket, if the child that saw me shortly after peeking out didn't. Once we were properly outside, I chanced a look again.

_Holy hell was it hot._

Seán remained relatively quiet as he got a ride.  When we got settled in the hotel, I realized why. He let me out onto the desk, then collapsed onto the bed.

Right. Jet lag.

I frowned, looking around. There wasn't really... well, anything. It was a Bean's hotel room. So, I stretched out the kinks from my extended pocket ride and climbed down. I was certainly thankful my time with Seán and Signe hadn't dulled any of my mobility. The real test though, was getting up on the bed on my own. I didn't really want to disturb him - though from my current position I wasn't sure he'd hear me anyway.

I was half way up when he started to move. I let out a surprised yelp, clinging to the sheets. The mattress shifted  _way_  more then I thought it would. The problem, of course, was that my surprise led him to moving a bit more erratically in worry.

My foot lost its hold, causing me to slip, which resulted in panic, which led to me losing all sense of focus. I tried to grab the sheets again, but there was no good place.

I braced myself to hit the floor and instead bounced on something much softer. I shook off the confusion and looked up to see Seán looking baffled. We both got our bearings.

I had landed on his outstretched hand, his shoulders and head the only things visible from my angle. I felt my face heat up. "I thought you were asleep."

His chuckle made my entire body shake, then he carefully lifted me to the bed. I stumbled onto it, then sat down to wait for him to shift back fully onto the bed. He kicked off his shoes before going limp on the mattress with a small groan.

"Fuckin' flights always take it outta me."

"It's a long ass flight," I replied, making my way over to his head so he wouldn't have to keep searching for me. As I sat back, he watched, a bit of hesitation swimming in those baby blues. I gave him a quizzical look.

"Dun think ya've ever sat this close for a talk."

"Well, I'm not about to shout across the room, and  _someone_  forgot to pack my cellphone." When the joke looked like it wouldn't hit right, I quickly added, "Me. That person was  _me_."

That drew a tiny laugh from him. "I shoulda been more careful."

I kicked his arm a little with a huff. "Literally no one could have planned for what happened. The driver was late, I got caught by surprise  _while_ sitting on the edge of a shelf, you thought I was elsewhere. No one's fault."

He stared at me for a brief moment, a little shocked. "Did you just  _kick_  me?"

I blew a small raspberry. "I would have elbowed you but I didn't want to get up."

That got a full laugh. I grinned a little to myself. Maybe this would be good for both of us.


	5. Off The Chest

I woke in a cold sweat, my ears still ringing with that thing's laugh. Pure white cloth surrounded me, the entire world gently moving up and down. My breath hitched as my mind caught up with the present, remembered who I was with.

"Yer fine, aos sí. It's justa dream."

There was no static. No shift to his voice. Calm, low, quiet. The sheets shifted, and a shadow covered me.

"Gunna sit up, I got'cha."

My entire world started to move, tilting back. I slumped against Seán's hand. Why did my entire body ache? Once he settled down, I wormed my head out of the sheets and pulled them close around my body. We stared at each other for a long moment. Then, I plunked my head against his chest, muttering incoherently. I felt him shift. My entire body tensed when I felt his other hand rest on my back, my fists clenched in the sheets.

"Just fine. Yer just fine."

I started to relax as the warmth of his hand soaked into my muscles. Gently, ever so gently, he pulled me closer.  Every time I tensed, he waited. By the time I realized what was going on, I had already started to cry.

It had been a very long time since I had been hugged.

\--

"Do ya ever regret leavin'?"

I looked up from my cap of tea, the heat helping me recover from my, ah. Episode. I gave him a quizzical look. "Leaving? My parents?"

He nodded, finishing his bite of pizza before noting, "Ya mentioned ya weren't sure how ya got to Brighton. But then, bein' back here where everyone's got yer accent--"

"I miss 'em."

Seán fell silent as I considered how to continue.

"I didn't want to stay, but I thought I would find other borrowers when I left." I grimaced. "There are no others near where you live. Not that we're that easy to find."

"'s that why ya didn't follow the rules after I found ya?"

I looked at him sheepishly. "You, uh. Knew about those?"

That drew a small chuckle from the man. "Figured there was somethin'. Always is with this typa stuff in fae tales, ya'know?"

I stared at my tea for a long moment before noting, "We're suppose to leave if we've been Seen. For our safety and the safety of all Borrowers, you have to leave so the humans don't learn. Don't get Seen, don't take what will be missed. Don't leave anyone behind." I let out a soft sigh. "Dad once said it's possible for a Borrower who leaves their childhood home to never see another Borrower again. I thought he was exaggerating, but..."

Seán hesitated, then scooted closer. I shrunk back a little and stared up at him. He offered a small smile, "Well, ya got me and Woosh now, right?"

I stared at my tea. My thought must have been evident, as Seán said it for me.

"I know... I know it isn't the same."

"But it helps. A lot."

He gave me a sad smile, then poked me in the side with his pinkie. I squirmed away with a yelp. A bit of a devious twinkle entered his eyes.

"That's not faaaaaair," I whined, wiggling away. The last thing I needed was him trying to tickle me all the time. My pathetic response drew a laugh from him.

"'m sorry, 'm sorry, that just--" He cut himself off with laughter. I pouted. If I could reach, I'd try to get revenge, but there wasn't much point. He let out a breath to steady himself then looked back at me with a grin. "So ya joinin' me out to LA today or stayin' here?"

"Here," I stated firmly. "Definitely here."


	6. Trouble

I spent the day exercising. It was thoroughly enjoyable. I climbed over the bed, the desks, the chairs. It had been a long time since I just... Acted like a Proper Borrower. It was easy to hide when Housekeeping showed up, and they had some pretty awesome music while they worked.

Seán came back shortly after dinner. We sat out on the step of his room, a nice little gated porch, to look at the scenery and enjoy the weather while eating.

In the middle of our conversation, Signe's ringtone sang out from the room. Without really realizing it, we stopped our conversation mid-sentence to let him answer it.

I munched away happily at the bit of cookie I had been left. Then a strange updraft wormed its way up my back. The hairs on the back of my neck started to stand on end. A low rumble sounded behind me, and I looked over my shoulder.

A large pair of yellow eyes stared back.

_Fuck_

I lept from the banister to the grass below. I misjudged the distance and collapsed to the ground. As I struggled to stand, I was pressed back down. I let out a panicked scream. It turned to pain as a claw dug into my arm. I heard Seán from inside. I squealed when I was grabbed by the cat's mouth, its fangs tearing my clothes without piercing my skin. I went limp, not willing to risk stabbing myself from my struggles. My stomach dropped as the cat lept high. It growled, fangs vibrating against me. With a whimper, I finally got my bearings. It stood on the branch of a tree, Seán hesitating beneath it. He met my gaze.

His fear fell away to a hardened expression, and he took a running jump into the tree. The cat hissed, and I watched its nails dig into the wood.

"Give her back, ya fuckin' prick," Seán spat. He seemed determined to not look down. The cat swiped at him as he got close. I couldn't figure out what to do, the cat's jaw locked in a precarious position around my torso. His hand snapped out. I seized up, images of a green haze filling my mind. I struggled to break free, anything to get away from his grip. The cat yeowled. I fell, briefly. Then, I was pressed against something that was moving. Forward, back. Forward, back.

"It's me. Yer fine. It's me, we're okay."

Seán's voice pierced the cackles sounding in my head, my breathing erratic. I was shaking.

... No. No I wasn't. He was.

"Alright, Jackaboy," he muttered to himself, shifting a little while keeping me close. "Jus'... don't look down."

I clung to his shirt, still partially lost in a green haze. I managed to bring my breathing to a reasonable rate.

A dog barked.

Seán's entire body jolted in shock.

We began to fall.


	7. A New Face

I was safe. Seán wasn't quite so lucky.

His pained yell filled my ears. The string of swears made me quiver with fear.

"Holy shit, Jack, are you alright!?" An unfamiliar voice sounded nearby. I felt a bit of dread well up in my stomach - I was not in a good spot. Seán's hand pressed against me, shifting a little in hopes of hiding me better.

"Can't say I am," he said through gritted teeth. It felt like he was struggling to move for a bit before getting up. I heard snuffling outside his hand.

"Chica, down, girl."

"Fuckin' hell, I think I fucked up my wrist."

"Here, lemme take--"

Seán's hand started to move, then the irishman jerked away, "No, no, I just--"

"This isn't really the time, we seriously need to get that wrist looked at."

I pushed my elbow against his palm twice. I felt Seán hesitate, then heard him say, "Alright. Just. Don't freak out. Or let Chica near her."

His hand started to move, and I winced at the sunlight. When my eyes adjusted, I was met by the face of one very stunned human. He stood at Seán's height, with darker skin and eyes. Disbelief was etched into his face. Seán tried to move, only to let out a hiss of pain. I looked over to his other wrist, which was starting to swell and change color.

A hesitant hand appeared next to Seán's. After my own hesitation, I jumped off. Seán immediately gripped his wounded wrist.

"Shit, Seán, what am I suppose to do" I squeaked.

"Oh, shit," the man holding me said.

"Just stay with Mark," he grunted. "I think we might need ta make a trip to the hospital. But I should probably get my stuff first... And I did kinda leave the door open."

Neither Mark nor I had any arguments that would have held, and I was transferred to Seán's pocket. Mark asked about me on the way, though Seán admitted wanting to wait until his wrist was taken care of. We went back into the hotel through the porch, leaving Mark's dog outside. She seemed surprisingly quiet.

Seán got his wallet and phone. I offered to call Signe back to fill her in while he and Mark went to deal with his wrist. Mark still seemed baffled by my presence, but at least it was better then disgusted.

They left quickly, and I dialed Signe.

"Seán!?" She answered, voice drenched in worry.

"N-No, but--"

"Oh thank God, you're alright! He just screamed your name in a panic and said he'd call back." Signe paused. "Wait, why are you the one calling? Is  _Seán_  alright?"

I managed to keep from sobbing when tears started to roll down my face. Gods above, I fucked up.

"He-- His wrist got messed up when-- a cat snatched me, I--"

"Oh no, shh shh. It's okay, Ani. Just his wrist?"

I nodded until I remembered it was just a phone call. "Y--Yeah. But someone else-- Someone else saw me, but I think Seán knew him? And they're both going to the hospital but I don't--"

"Deep breath."

I listened.

"Did you hear his name?"

"Mark? I think?"

That drew a baffled laugh from the other side of the phone. "Really? Oh gosh, you'll both be fine."

"... Promise?"

"Promise. Mark's a sweetie. I'm sure once Seán gets to tell him everything, you'll be fine. Are you okay?"

I stared at the phone. Signe's still face stared back, a selfie she'd taken when Seán hadn't been looking. I took a deep breath.

"No."

"Do you think you can get to the sink in your own? A hot bath might calm your nerves."

I looked to the other side of the room. I could probably do it.

"Can I call you back after?" I asked.

"Of course."

It took a lot longer to get to the some then I would have thought, but it was fairly easy to fill it with hot water. I didn't want to take it with my clothes on, but I had no idea when they were going to be back. I pulled a wash cloth over and threw it in. Then, I slid in myself and wrapped it around me.

Signe had been right. The hot water released a tension in my body I had forgotten I had. I even managed to convince myself up relax my mind. Signe and Seán trusted whoever Mark was. No one else could get in the hotel room.

Sean was going to be fine.


	8. Awkard Conversation

Getting out of the sink proved difficult, but I eventually managed it. It took a lot to drain the water, and I decided to not even bother trying to get the cloth out for now. I went back to Seán's phone, had a brief conversation with Signe, and opened up one of the mobile games.

I'm not sure how long it had been, but when I heard the door handle turn, I dove under the folds of the comforter. The fact the phone was still running a game didn't really occur to me until Seán poked how head in. He looked no worse for wear, if a bit exhausted.

"Is this really necessary?" The deeper voice from before asked from the hall.

Seán walked in with a nod, finally seeing me under the covers. There was a wrap around his hand and wrist.  He looked back at Mark as the man came into view. Mark looked as uncertain as I felt.

"Should we actually do this?" He asked, rubbing the back of his head.

Seán hesitated at that. I worked an arm free, not sure why I suddenly felt so daring. "Let's be honest. I'd be freaking out about you and you'd be convinced it was a fever dream."

Mark jolted in surprise, brown eyes locking with mine. We just sorta stared at each other for a moment.

"I. Mean sure but. Uh." Mark glanced at Seán for help, who was still a bit stunned from my declaration. "A lot already happened."

I worked myself out from the blanket and sat on the bed in plain view. There was a long pause as no one knew what to say.

"So your wrist is okay?" I finally asked.

Seán let out a breath."Yeah, just a sprain. Kinda severe, but it's not broken." He walked over and say on the floor, leaning against the bed with a sigh. After a bit, Mark joined him and I moved to the edge of the bed side table.

I waved. "Name's Ani, by the way."

He seemed to relax a little and offered a small smile. "Mark. Nice to meet you."

None of us knew what to say after that. Eventually, Seán was able to break the silence by bringing me up to speed with what he had told Mark. (Which was basically everything). After, Mark offered to house us for the rest of the stay, if Seán thought he could cancel the hotel room. The decision was left up to me (Seán didn't care either way), and I figured it would be easier for both of us if we were in an actual house - especially with someone who actually knew who I was. Hotels are far too big for Borrowers.

Mark departed for the night, Seán and I caught Signe up on what was happening, then collapsed onto the bed.

I woke up in a panic when something started to drag me across the bed. Frozen in terror, I tried to collect my thoughts. I could feel the static, my breath cutting short with every inhale. I jolted. A pained cry escaped me as the hand stopped moving.

Seán woke with a start.

"Oh-- Oh fuckin' Christ, I'm so sorry!"

I curled up, the hotel room glitching to his recording studio. I think I could hear Seán behind me. Seán, or...?

"C'mon, aos sí, yer safe, I promise..."

I took a deep breath. My heart pounded in my ears. He was rubbing my back, ever so gently.

I chanced a glance over my shoulder. He towered over me, but the concern etched in his brow helped keep me calm. When he met my gaze, he shifted and put his chin on the mattress. I let out a soft whimper and went limp in defeat.

"I'm so fuckin' sorry," he murmured.

"Were you trying to reach for Signe?" I asked, my voice low. He winced.

"Yer guess is as good as mine, but that's probably it."

Neither of us knew what to say next. Instead, we curled back into our most comfortable positions.

As I fell asleep, I could only hope it wouldn't happen again.


	9. A Different House

The next morning came with no incident. Seán packed everything up while I... watched. Mostly. It was one of those moments that I really didn't know what to do. Eventually, he offered a pocket, and we set out.

The hotel was rather understanding, paying back the nights he was cancelling, and Mark showed up a bit later to pick us up.

As Seán got settled in the passenger seat, I heard Mark ask, "I'll assume she isn't in either of the bags."

Feeling oddly sassy that morning, I popped my head out of the sweater pocket with a cheery, "Hello!"

He nearly jumped out of his skin, the car swerving a little. I yelled in surprise, but Seán's hand was already at his pocket to catch me.

"Sorry."

"It's-- it's fine I just didn't. Oh boy." Mark let out a soft laugh. "Nice to see you again."

"Yer gonna scare someone to death one of these days," Seán laughed, making sure I was secure before lowering his hand again.

"I didn't mean to," I huffed, hopefully loud enough for them to hear. At the light chuckle that shook the hoodie, I assumed at least Seán had.

I stayed hidden for the rest of the car ride. Seán and Mark talked about the upcoming convention, though I mostly tuned it out. When we got to Mark's house, Seán double checked with his friend to make sure no one else was around, then let me out on a table. I stretched my legs as the boys went to get situated. I could see the golden dog from the other day at the door, waiting. She seemed more intent on where Mark and Seán had gone then on me, so I wandered off the table. After a bit more stretching, I sprinted along the edge of the wall, taking in how large the rooms around me were. It felt good to just move.

I stopped in front of an outlet to catch my breath. Something in the back of my mind told me to look at it, but I could hear those two coming back. I ran off to a nearby chair and, with some difficulty, managed to climb it.

"Aos sí?"

"Over here!"

My yell drew Seán's attention to me and he balked. "We weren't gone that long!"

I shrugged, then jumped into his hand and sat down. "Needed to get my bearings. Can't do that on a table."

Seán gave me a concerned look. "Just be careful. Mark's not used ta lookin' out fer ya."

I blew a small raspberry at him, then nodded. He lifted me up to his shoulder, where I plopped down and pouted. Mark came in as I did so.

"Did I miss something?" He asked, a bit of his own concern evident.

"Just Seán being a worry wart," I scoffed.

"Sweet Jesus, Voosh would have my head if anythin' happened ta ya."

"Mm, sounds like a you problem." I grinned when that drew a laugh from Mark. Seán pouted.

"What were your plans today, Jack?"

I held onto the collar of his hoodie as Seán shook his thoughts. "Dinnae have much. Been playin' it by ear."

"Well, I still need to record, so..."

They started to wander down the hallway, continuing the conversation. Apparently Mark had a recording room for two people? Seán seemed excited at the prospect of playing games with him at the very least.

I got off outside of the recording room and admitted to wanting explore the house on my own. Mark requested a brief moment to get his dog before anything major happened, though that hardly took any time.

Once they had disappeared beyond the recording room door, I did another take of the house. Really, just discovering all the nooks and crannies this one had to offer would take up the entire visit.

I wandered the hall, not really looking too closely. Hallways were never a good spot, too exposed for no resources. A door sit slightly ajar further ahead, and I poked my head in. A bedroom. My curiosity peaked and I wandered in. The dresser was fairly far off the floor and I couldn't help but feel a tad jealous. I hadn't ever lived somewhere like this, but my parents had talked about them being treasure troves of borrowables.

I froze when I reached the half way point beneath the dresser. An arch had been cut in the base of the wall, too precise for any animal. I wandered over and felt around. Sure enough, a handle, hidden by the design, was carved into it. I pulled it, the wall easily sliding away. It has even been sanded down.

There was another Borrower in this house.


	10. Another

I waited until that night to go looking.

I felt naked for the first time in a long time without my gear. I had gotten so used to wandering without it in Brighton, but this new house brought all of my memories flooding back to me. I wish I had a grappling hook, at least. I wanted to find one of the entrances along the walls, but without a proper light, there was no way I could navigate inside. So I made my way to the kitchen to see if they were Borrowing tonight.

The kitchen was silent when I first arrived. I was a little worried I had missed them. But when I got to the bottom of the counters and strained my ears, I could hear the slightest scuffling. I tentatively called out, hoping I wasn't hearing things. The sound stopped. I called out again, a tad louder. No reply. My shoulders sagged in defeat.

"Up here."

I nearly jumped out of my skin at the voice above me. I looked to see another face looking over the edge of the counter top at me.

"Do you need a line?"

"Yes please."

The face disappeared and a moment later, a thread unraveled towards me. I caught it and began to climb. Kinda wish I had my gloves.

When I got to the top, the other Borrower helped me over the edge. A boy, about my age, with a short floof of brown hair and green eyes. He looked as happy to see me as I did to see him.

"Holy shit!" he said, a grin taking over his face. "It's been so long since I-- Where did you-- Wait." He took a step back and looked at me. I guess not having any gear was pretty weird. "What are you doing here? How--"

"Okay, first off, HI! I'm Ani."

He shook his thoughts and smiled again. "Ethan! How long have you been in this house? I've never seen you before!"

I debated for a moment, then figured there was no point in hiding my situation from him. "I just arrived this morning, actually. With that Bean that came to visit."

He looked flabbergasted. "Without any gear?"

I felt my face heat up as I quietly admitted, "He's well aware that I was with him."

Ethan's eyes went wide, "WHAT!?"

We both froze at a grunt that responded to his yell. I looked over my shoulder. Someone was coming towards the kitchen. I shooed Ethan into a hiding spot and plopped down in the center of the counter.

Seán poked his head in, looking a tad bleary eyed. "Aos sí? What the hell are ya doin' out here at one in tha mornin'?"

I glanced off to the side, hoping some combination of his tired state and our distance kept him from noticing me looking at Ethan, who managed to duck for cover, though it wasn't the best hiding spot. I looked back at Seán.

"Was hungry, thought I'd find something to munch on. Wanted to stretch my legs."

He gave me A Look. I wouldn't have believed that lie either. Thankfully, he didn't question me and went to the fridge. I glanced at Ethan and motioned for him to get going before turning my attention back to Seán. He pulled out a couple of strawberries and got himself a glass of water before coming back over to me. We ate in comfortable silence, and once we cleaned up the remains, he offered me a ride back to the room.

Figuring Ethan was long gone, I agreed. It took much less time to travel the house on Seán's shoulder, but I found myself unable to sleep once we got back to the guest room. It had been well over two years since I had seen another Borrower. I loved Signe and Seán, but actually seeing someone my size again? Not that I was sure he would trust me. I was Seen, and he wasn't. If he wanted to keep his home secret...

I took a deep breath to steady my heart beat, then buried myself further into the washcloth I had been given as a bed and blanket.

I really wanted to see him again.


	11. A Step Forward

_It's glitched, green hand slammed down in front of me, blocking off my exit. I could feel it lower its head behind me, its hot breath making shivers run down my spine._

_"Yo̢u͜ ͞j҉u̵st͘ w̸at͠ch̕e͟d̕. ̡D̶idn'͏t̡ eve͜n q͢u̢es̴t̨ion.͘"_  

_I choked back a sob, eyes desperate to find a way out. That high pitched cackle echoed around me. It's other hand snaked into my view, a mangled, black void._

_"It's̕ ͝a͠ll͘ yo͢ur ̶f̕ault̛.͠"_  

_"I didn't mean to!" I screamed, then felt the air leave my lungs as its healthy hand encased me in an iron grip. It lifted me far above the ground, and let go._

I jolt awake in the same cold sweat I always did. I struggled against the hand that lay over me, slipping on the moving world beneath me. I collapsed against it and listened, focused on the rush of air I could hear below me.

In. Out. In. Out.

Tears silently rolled down my cheeks as I curled up on Seán's chest. He was asleep, must've moved me a while ago. For a brief moment, I considered moving back to the washcloth. I looked back at his hand, still over my calves. I looked forward, wincing at the sight of the brace around his wrist. That really had been my fault.

I shifted and squirmed back, only for him to shift and replace his hand over me like a blanket. He muttered nonsense under his breath, but didn't wake.

I listened to his breathing for a long moment before my eyelids began to feel heavy. The warmth of his hand seeped into my tired body.

I drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	12. Home

Mark and Seán went out around LA the next day. There wasn't anywhere for me to hide to tag along, so I stayed in the house. However, to keep his dog, Chica, from overheating, Mark had to leave her inside as well, and honestly I didn't want to constantly battle having to deal with her, so I was kind of stranded on the table.

Until I heard a quiet voice from the wall.

"Hey! Hey, Ani, right?"

I bolted upright from my ceiling staring to look over the edge of the table. Down at the floor, against the wall, a section had been removed. Ethan smiled up at me.

"Yeah! Oh geez, I wasn't sure you were going to come back after last night!"

He twirled his hook and thread a bit before tossing it up to me. I grabbed it and hooked it firmly in a crevice. I was ready to slide down, only to see him starting to climb up. I waited, then helped him over the edge of the table. He flopped back with a huff. He hadn't brought any supplies or bags with him, just the grappling hook.

"And miss the chance to talk to someone again? Hell no!"

I told myself it was not a good idea to cry here, though I did bounce in my spot a little. "I don't even know what to talk about, I'm just so excited to see someone my size again!"

He folded his legs beneath him, leaning forward. "You really are Seen, but not in any danger?"

I bit my lip, looking towards all of Seán's stuff. "Yeah, I didn't believe it myself, at first!" I quickly counted on my hands. "At this point, four Beans know about me, but they all seem perfectly fine keeping it to themselves." I hesitated. I guess it was techincally five with...

"Hey, you alright?"

I snapped out of my memory and nodded. "Yeah. I mean, it hasn't all been great, and right now it's  _really_  aggravating 'cause I wasn't even suppose to join Seán on this trip, but--"

"Wait, I thought that Bean's name was Jack? Mark kept call him Jack."

I shrugged. "He goes by both."

Ethan scrunched up his face. "He has two names? That seems a little silly."

"I thought that too! But I guess it's the whole YouTube thing."

"Oooh, yeah! I guess Mark does go by Markiplier when he's sitting at his computer. And he knows about you, too?"

I nodded, "That one was kind of awkward." I felt my face go red as I admitted, "Seán, his girlfriend, Signe, and his video editor, Robin, know about me because, I, uh... Kiiiinda didn't realize he could see me from his recording camera?"

Ethan went wide eyed. "Seriously? How long did they know?"

"A while, apparently. Though it wasn't until I did something a little  _too_  daring that Seán caught me." I huffed. Saying this all made me sound like a terrible Borrower. Ethan poked my forehead.

"Hey, it's a mistake anyone could make."

I sunk back a little, "Yeah, but I was the one who made it."

He blew a raspberry, then looked around. I saw a familiar overwhelmed feeling on his face. He turned his attention back to me. "Hey, do you want to head back into the walls? For a bit?"

I nodded. Maybe we'd actually get stuff that's my size in there.

\--

Ethan had a lot of easy access entrances throughout the house. He had left a light inside of the one he had come through to see me. His pathways had been carved to stairs and ladders, with a pulley system set up to help him between the first and second floors. He admitted the pulley system was meant to work for one person, but believed it could support both of us. The rush of the fall was exhilarating.

It stopped suddenly in the middle of the drop, and I nearly fell off. Ethan managed to catch me.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry! I should have warned you about that."

I regained my balance on the button, my face heating up when Ethan's hand stayed on my waist to keep me balanced. He seemed to realize what he was doing and quickly removed his hand to pull at a string nearby.

"What's that for, anyway?" I asked, hoping to distract us both from the awkward.

"To, ah. Make the descent faster without hurting me. It stops halfway so I can slowly let it down from there."

I looked down below us into the darkness. Ethan's light didn't reach that far. The descent was still quick, but not really the free fall the first half had been. At the bottom, we both jumped off the button. I shook out the bit of stiffness in my legs and followed him further through the walls.  He opened a section of the wall, and a blast of cool air hit me as we entered.

His house was quite... homey. I had never gotten a set up like it in my time in Brighton. Brightly colored cloth made for wallpaper, with various other pieces of forgotten clothing pieces spread around to make his tables and chairs. A metal jut out of the ventilation system sat in an undecorated corner.

I burst into tears.

Ethan panicked, asking if I was alright, but between my sobs, all I could do was nod.

"I haven't been somewhere like this since I left my parents," I admitted once I calmed down enough to talk. I smiled as I wiped my eyes. "I just-- Didn't realize how much I missed it."

"Uuuhhh," Ethan hesitated, looking a tad lost. "Tea?"

I laughed a little, still wiping my face of tears.

"Yeah. Tea would be great."


	13. Much Needed Conversation

We talked through a full pot of tea and a decent chunk of lunch. About... well, nothing in particular. Life before we left our parents, how far we had traveled. Ethan, like me, had hopped a plane to find a new place. And, like me, discovered a lack of other Borrowers when he got there. He had followed Mark around for a while, at this point and, surprisingly, had become friends with Chica. He admitted that a large part of that, he was pretty sure, was because he had already been here when Mark adopted her.

I told him about life in Brighton with Seán and Signe. What it was like being Seen. I still traveled by the walls, but I had been given access to so much more. Like my cell phone, and attempts to use their gaming systems, as well as watching movies with them. It wasn't all great, as there were times I had to rely on them in situations I wouldn't have otherwise been in. Like being Seen by Mark. But overall, the experience was a positive one.

He kept asking about how I actually met Seán, but I avoided the subject. I didn't want to think of...

No. He deserved to know that, too.

"Before I can tell you that story, you, uh. Probably need to know about--" My throat tightened for a bit before I managed to squeak out his name. "Anti."

"Anti?"

"It's a... Signe calls it a demon, this. Thing. Of static that keeps trying to control Seán."

I went into full details of my encounter with the thing, and Ethan kept quiet and in rapt attention the whole time. By the time I was finished, tears were streaming down my face again. I didn't realize Ethan had gotten up until he pulled me into a hug. I just... sobbed. I sobbed, and cried, and let out all of my emotions of being who I was in the situation I was in. Ethan didn't say anything, just let me get it all out. I hadn't realized how much I needed it until that moment.

When I finally managed to gain my composure again, I let out an airy laugh, trying to wipe my face clean. "I'm sorry, I didn't-- I literally just met you last night, and here I am--"

"Don't be like that!" I jumped a little at his volume, and he went a little red. He cleared his throat. "I mean. It's fine. Really. It sounds like you've needed it for a while, now."

"Y-- Yeah, I guess I did. Thank you."

\--

We ran out of conversation after that, but were happy to just drink tea together. Eventually, I had to admit I had to go back to the guest room - I didn't need Seán causing a ruckus trying to find me if I wasn't there when they got home. Ethan led me back through the house, up the pulley and back to the guest room wall. He offered me another hug before giving me a spare grapple.

"Want me to swing by the kitchen tonight?" I asked, figuring he would need to restock the tea.

"Sure! Just try not to wake anyone up on the way."

I stuck my tongue out at him. "I'm not  _that_  bad at Borrowing."

Ethan laughed, then waved me goodbye before disappearing back into the wall. I threw the grapple up to the table, letting it latch firmly in the side, then started to shimmy up.

I froze as the bed started to creak. A familiar hand leaned over to my thread and pulled me up. I let out a small squeak as I was brought face to face with Seán's smiling face.

"Didja have fun?"


	14. Nighttime Talk

My face went beet red as Seán set me down on the table. He shifted to lay on his stomach to talk to me as face to face as we could.

"I thought you two were gunna be gone all day," I said as quietly as I could.

"'s six in the afternoon, aos sí."

I opened my mouth to respond, then closed it. I wasn't sure how to respond, shrinking back. Seán's brow furrowed. "Sorry, didn't mean ta make ya embarrassed."

"Don't tell Mark, please," I replied. "I don't want to give their presence away."

Seán eyed me for a moment, then nodded. "I won't. You were a special circumstance. Looks like ya needed the time though. 'm happy ya found someone else to talk to."

I laughed a little. "I... didn't realize how  _much_  I needed it."

He let out a puff of a sigh. "Ain't that how it usually goes." He ruffled my hair with a finger, and I tried to wave him off with a giggle. "Hungry?"

While I thought we had eaten enough when I was with Ethan, my stomach twisted a little to remind it that was actually several hours ago. I nodded. When his hand is offered, I jump up and run up to his shoulder. Seán wiggled a bit at the feeling - we hadn't really done that much - and got out of bed once I was settled.

There was an open pizza box in the kitchen, and Seán grabbed a couple slices of pizza, cutting one into small bits for me. Far too many. I peered at him. He just winked in return and chowed down.

We ate in silence, then went back to the guest room to watch YouTube, with not much else planned for the night. Seán lay on his stomach, as far back on the bed as he could, pillow tucked under his head. I leaned on his arm, his phone propped up against the backboard.

I'm not sure when we fell asleep. But I woke up to a familiar face looking at me.

Once my mind registered Ethan's place on the bed, I jolted up and looked back at Seán. He was still fast asleep. I turned back to Ethan.

"What are you doing here!?" I asked in a harsh whisper.

"You didn't show up at the kitchen," he replied, a disappointed look on his face. "I thought something happened to you."

I felt my face go a little red again. These guys really needed to stop doing that to me. I started to get to my feet. "I'm-- I'm fine, but you really need to--"

We both froze as Seán shifted in his sleep. My eyes flicked between his shoulders, and when I saw one arm start to slip out from under the pillow, I grabbed the front of Ethan's shirt and ran the other way.

"We should really, at least, head into the wall," I murmured. "Seán isn't always the heaviest of sleepers."

Ethan nodded and led my back to the hook he had in the bed. We slid down and snuck back into the wall, closing the door behind us.

I shook out the rest of my tired and gave Ethan a smile. "So, climbed all the way up here just to bother me?"

His ears went a tad red, "Well, ya'know."

I snickered, then nodded, "I'm just teasing. Yes, I do know." My smile fell a little to be a bit more somber. "Gets real lonely bein' the only Borrower around."

He sat back with a huff. "Eh, I'm sure losing my mind won't have too many adverse effects."

I let out a strained laugh. "Don't do that! There's few enough of us as there is!"

"Eh, it'll happen sooner or later. But you're definitely helping."

I stumbled a bit over non-sense before shrinking back with an embarrassed giggle.

Ethan grinned, "So how long are ya stayin'?"

My face fell as I realized. "Four more days."

"... Oh." He shifted a little. "Or. You could stay?"

I winced. Truth be told, I had thought about it. But... "I don't know if I could do that to Signe and Seán. I mean. Yeah, being Seen isn't... the greatest, 'specially since I want to be kept hidden from everyone else, but..."

Ethan nodded, "I get it." He hesitated. "I could come with you?"

I balked. "What!? I mean-- Y-You could, I would have to ask Seán, but-- I promise, it's not as great as I might have--"

"It sounds pretty daunting, honestly."

I snapped my mouth shut.

"I mean, I saw what it was like when you first walked into my house. And-- And I mean, it probably wouldn't be  _too_  hard to set something up like that and if they already know about us anyway I bet we could ask for stuff and ya'know I just think it would be nice to not be alone, ya'know?"

I let out an airy laugh. "I. I'd have to ask Seán and Signe, but. I-- I think I'd like that."

Ethan's face lit up with a smile.

We managed to converse a bit longer about nothing in particular, but soon the abrupt awakening caught up to me. When my yawning was interrupting every sentence I tried to say, Ethan admitted defeat, and we went back out.

He offered me the grapple. Confused, I grabbed it. When I had a firm grip on it, Ethan leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. I froze, feeling my face turn brilliant, cherry red, as Ethan took a step back and rubbed the back of his head, his own face reddening.

We both let out a surprised squeak when one very sleepy, quiet, Irish voice sounded above us.

"Well tha's just fuckin' adorable."


	15. Introductions

Ethan was back in the wall before I comprehended what happened. I looked over to him trying to catch his breath just inside the entryway, then pouted up at Seán. The Irishman scratched his head a bit in concern.

"Sorry. Dinnae mean ta scare ya."

I blew a raspberry and walked over to Ethan. "He's not going to bite."

"Okay, sure," Ethan whispered. "But he's still  _hovering_."

I dropped my face into my palm and looked back to Seán, shooing him back to the bed. He shifted out of sight. Ethan poked his head out again, then followed me to the table. I flung the grapple up, then went up first. Ethan was hesitant to follow, but eventually did. I offered him a seat next to me. He sat rigid, staring at Seán with wide eyes. Seán, to his credit, had rolled onto his back and thrown an arm over his eyes. I decided to break the silence.

"Alright, ya drunken eavesdropping jerk, how much did you hear?"

"'nough ta know he wants to move," Seán replied, pointing a finger towards us. "You two really aren' that quiet."

I shifted in my spot.

"Sorry."

Ethan and I glanced at each other, then burst into a fit of giggles at our simultaneous apology. When I calmed a bit, I saw Seán peeking out under his arm at us with a bit of a teasing grin. I waved angrily at him to get him to look away again.

"Eh, 's fine. Just don't stay up too late."

I pouted. "Actually came out here to go back to sleep."

Ethan fidgeted in his spot. "So. May I?"

Seán lifted his arm to look over at us. Ethan froze, though relaxed when I patted his shoulder. Seán gave him a tired, warm smile. "'course. I'll double check with Signe tomorrow, but I can't think of a reason not to."

It took all my energy to contain my squeal of joy.

There wasn't much more to offer in way of conversation, so we said our goodnights to Ethan, and I curled up in my washcloth of a bed.

 

 

I̵̵̷̗̠͇̯͇̟ͯ͊ͫ͂ṯ̶̨̛͔͕͔͕͓̟͎̙̻́̎̏ͥ̑̂ͩ͐̎͛̆͜͡ ̡͙̠͓̪͕̗̬̗̼͉̳̗͆͂͊ͤ̀ͯ̓͗̓̌̇̚͘͞d̴ͩ̑ͧ͑̓̓̒͒͗ͦͬ͂ͫͪͫ̎̾͏҉͍̟̜̫͓̠̰̦͔̥̝͓̭̺̟̘̕ͅo̸̙̥̳̜̯̩͎̟͖͕̝̎͆ͧ̓͟eͩ͋ͪͨ̏̏ͯ͌҉͉̭̖͞s̵̡̛̫͚̮͕̠̣̥͔̝͉̮͇̣͑͌ͫ̊̉͗́ͧ̎̽̐ň̡̼̘̟̝̖̥̳̩̼͔͖͇̮͗ͩͧ̔͂ͩ̌͑̏ͩ͗ͨ͐̂́͞'͒̍̈́ͨ͊͊̔ͣ̑ͤ̇͏̵̴̘͎̞̺̘̝̪̗̥̞̰͞͝t̸̪̥͙̱̱̬͚̲͍͈͕̜̝̼̠ͥ̾ͧͫ͑ͭ͒ͮ̇̈ͦ͐̋̎̒̎̚ ̡̪̰͈̻̗ͩ̾̐̅ͪ̓̏̃ͯ̔̿̒̾͝h̢̳̰̤͉͚̦ͩͥ̆ͫͣ͝a̸̢͇̝͇̱͓͍̭͎̺̎̾͋ͨ̽̅̕ͅv̗͕͉͙͎̄̍͋̇ͥ͞ͅe̷̷̜͍͔̲̜͉̣̱͇͕̘̲̮ͦͯ͊̾̍̒̓̈̑ͭ ̈́ͮͮ̌ͩͧ̈̊̐̈̌͑̎͏̧̘̞̹̙̱͈͡t̸̢͚̥͖̻̝͙͎̜̯̱̝̖͉̲ͤ͗ͬ̾̋̈́̉͊͜͞͝o͛̈͗͛́ͤͮ̈́͘͏҉҉̸͈̖̰̙̞͔̜̲ ̶̴͙̭̲͈͖̭͕̰͙̣͙́̃ͤ̀͆͞b̸̵͋̏̍͆ͨ͛ͬ̌̃ͨͨͤͩ͏̸̼̙̗̥e͍̟̹̠͆ͪ̌ͩ̊̃͌̓͂͑̕͢͡͝ ͊ͮ̔ͩ̈̾͌͏̧̭͖̜̘̝̫̣͙̤̭̱̯̪͚͈̭͍͈̖S̸̈́ͮͨ͑ͮ̇͛͑ͯ҉̦̻͚̗̜̙̳̳̥eͯ͋̊ͥ̍̈ͩ̀̾̑͂͛͟͡͏̣͎̜͎̼̭̪̯̪̜̳̯̪̜̺á̧̇̏ͥͥ̓̃̒ͦ̑ͦ̆̀ͩ̈́҉̙͖͇̹̣̭͖̱̤̣̘̬̠̬̬͇n̵̻̬͇̣̩̱͓̘̳͖̙ͣͮ͑̇̿̾ͣ̅̕ͅ

 

 

I bolted awake in a cold sweat. It wasn't the terror. Or a fear. There was a crawling sense of dread, running down my back. I took a deep breath, trying to keep my heart rate from going any faster.

I was alone. Seán had already gotten ready and must have left me to sleep in. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. There was no note, so I could only assume he had just gone to get food. I buried myself in the washcloth, trying to remember what happened in my sleep.

Had I had a nightmare? There had been something, but it wasn't like the others.

I screamed when the door opened.

"Oh sweet Jesus!"

I scrambled out of my hideaway to look over at Seán, who was trying to rebalance a plate of food.

"Uh, everything okay, Jack?" an unfamiliar voice called from down the hall. Seán looked at me, and once I nodded, he shouted back.

"Yeah! Sorry, jus' got spooked by a spider." There was a bit of silence that followed, then he slowly approached me, closing the door on his way. "You okay, aos sí?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. No point in worrying him. "Just a nightmare that had me on edge."

He frowned, then sat down on the bed, the plate of food nearby. Eggs, bacon, and some fruit. I assumed the usual and took a blueberry for myself. "Sure 's just a nightmare?"

I considered it for a moment, then sighed. "I don't know what it was. Usually I'm terrified after them, but this time I just felt... tense."

He tilted his head in thought as he munched a bit on some bacon. "Could be gettin' better."

I offered an awkward smile. "I hope so."

But something told me it wasn't.


	16. PAX

The next few days went by with little problem. Mark came to visit us in Seán's room once or twice, and Seán hung out with him during the day while I was with Ethan. Once Signe had been informed (and was excited at the idea of me having my own roommate), we started packing up the essentials from Ethan's home. Without reason to hide, we were able to take a bit more in Seán's luggage then a Borrower usually would. Throughout all of it, however, that feeling of dread stayed with me in the back of my mind.

It was the last day when we jumped into a pocket with Seán to go to PAX with him, intending to leave that night straight from PAX for a Red Eye flight out of LAX. The trip there was entertaining, Seán and Mark talking about the activities they intended to go to - both being done with panels - and I finally had someone to talk to during the trip, close enough that we could whisper to each other and still hear.

At the convention center, Seán brought us in in his sweater to leave backstage. He wasn't too keen on bringing us around, and it was warm enough he didn't need the sweater anyway. We assured him we'd be fine.

As these stories go, we weren't.

 _Someone_ got in. We didn't try to find out, mostly because they stole Jack's sweater, with us inside, and bolted.

As the din of the convention started to get louder, Ethan grabbed me by the wrist and jumped. I was still too stunned to comprehend where we were until we had gotten behind a display. Something was tickling the back of my mind, something I h͝ad tr̨o͟u̧͢b̕͝͠le̵͡͡ f͜͡i̧͢g͡h͏̶͡҉̵t̢̕̕į̧͞n̨̨͠g̷̕͘

"Ani! Ani, snap out of it!"

I shook my thoughts, focusing on Ethan's face. My fear melted away. I wasn't alone.

"We gotta figure out how to get back there."

"Do we even know where  _there_ is?" I asked, a bit harsher then I meant to. We covered our ears as a voice echoed over the PA system. Once it was done, we sat down to think.

"We know they parked at E5," Ethan offered.

I shook my head. "Seán would probably miss his flight before thinking of leaving without us." I chewed on my lip for a moment, glancing around. I perked up a little. A sheet of paper lay on the ground nearby.

"Oh! Maybe that's one of the schedules he was looking at in the car!"

Ethan hesitated. "How are we going to get it?"

_W̶e'l͡l ͡m̢ake i͢t._

I took a deep breath. Something felt wrong, but I couldn't place what. "I don't know. We could try sprinting for it?"

Ethan stared at me for a moment. "And risk either being Seen by a lot of humans, or getting trampled."

"Well! Do you have a better idea!?"

He looked between me and the paper for a moment, then let out a sigh. "No, I don't."

With a huff, I started to count. At three, we tore across the floor to the paper. Feet pounded around us, no one paying attention as they tried to hurry to the next spot. One landed near me, my heart lept into my throat.

My̡ ͏v̢ision̴ ͟tw͟itc̵hed.̶

I tried to focus on the paper, grabbing it as Ethan did. He pointed to a nearby corner.

  I ̡to͠r̸e ͝th͏e҉ ͡pa͏p̕er ̸a l̶ittl͏e̕.̸ 

I shook off the thought and lifted my side, letting Ethan lead the way. He ducked behind a planter.

 

 

L̶̢̦̙̰̱̣͖̭͖̲̬̗̞͕̖̺̹͈͊̋͗̇ͯ̄ͭ͋̊ͅȩ̴͉͍̻͇͙̦̠̗̗̱̪͕͔͉̣͙͛ͭ̄ͥͧ̂́͊̄ͭͧ̂͘t̢̛̋͊͂̋ͪ͗ͬ̒̑̆ͬ͋̑̒̃̔̂̅͛͏̱̫̜ ̴̶̤̳͎̭̖̮͇̻̙̺̯̪̝̺̊́̔͑̀͂̑ͥͫͣ̋̔̚g̋ͨͥ̈̏̑ͩ͛̚҉̞̗͔̬̖̻̜͕̝͉̱̰͙̺͈o̴̠͕̖̜͎̩̳̭̽ͥ͂ͪͨͮ̑ͯ̏̆͛̔̋̇ͭ͋̈

 

 

I stopped against my will, body jerking. My hands relaxed, letting the paper flutter to the ground.

I҉ st̡arte͏d ͠t҉o mov҉e̷ ̧i̧n҉t̴o͠ t̸he ͞cr͟ow̛d͡s.͢

I managed to contain my scream as Ethan grabbed me and hauled me back into hiding. I felt that dread on my back, stronger then ever, a cold sweat covering my body. I shuddered.

"What the hell was that!?"

I looked up at him, tears rolling down my cheeks. I knew exactly who it was.

"Anti."


	17. A Plan

A brush of static sounded near my ear. I knew better then to look.

"Ethan, we  _have_ to find Seán."

"Are you kidding me!?" he hissed. "This place is huge! Even for Beans!"

I rubbed my face and dragged my hands behind my neck, flipping off the air behind me. "Yes. But, we know they were excited to go to that YouTube Creator Panel. Maybe we can catch them there."

Ethan glanced down at the paper beneath us. "The one at 3pm?"

"Yeah." I looked around the area. There weren't any clocks, but I could see a glass door to the outside. There weren't very large shadows. "It looks like it's around noon, so we still have time."

"Except the panel is on  _the_   _third floor_."

I frowned. "How do you know that."

He pointed to a sign nearby, indicating rooms in the hundreds on either side. "We need to be at 310."

I spat a curse. Then looked at the sign again. "There's an elevator."

When Ethan didn't respond immediately, I looked over at him. He stared, pale faced and worried.

"An elevator!? Are you insane!? We can barely get through the edge of the halls without fear of being trampled!"

I hesitated. Static whispered in my ear.

_No, this is my idea, and we don't have any others. Fuck off._

"It'd be easier and probably safer then the stairs. And unless this convention center already has Borrower Access, it's not like we can use the walls."

Ethan bounced a little, brow furrowed in concentration before he whined a little. "Fine, but let's at least find a map first."

"Is there one under here?" I asked, peeking under our small prize. We lucked out. There was.  With a bit of effort, we flipped it over and worked it out. I kept getting distracted by a flickering light above us, making my head hurt.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Just the light. We got a plan?"

He blew a raspberry. "I guess. You sure about this?"

"Y̶es̴, let's just get this over with."

We took off. There was no waiting for feet to stop. No one stopped. But we could see a difference in the groups. Solo Beans who paid more attention to their surroundings, compared to large groups who gossiped among themselves. We sprinted between cardboard cutouts, tables, and decorations. We stopped to break in a small crevice, panting. I felt something tickle the back of my mind, my eye starting to twitch.

I shook it off. It was following me.

Then it went away.

A light bulb popped.

My scream was covered by the others from the Beans. Ethan pulled me into a hug to help keep me calm.

"We're okay. It's fine. We're going to get this."

I nodded. "How far?"

"We're nearly there. I can see them."

I looked around again. A clock hung high on a wall nearby. 1:30. We still had time.

"How are we going to do this?"

My stomach plummeted. I had been dreading that question. "There won't be anywhere to hide."

Ethan winced. "No. There won't be."

We looked at each other. Then at the elevator. There was a planter right next to it and countless beans passing by. Ethan grabbed my hand and squeezed before letting go. With one last glance at each other, we ran.

All of my senses were trained on the air above and before me. I ran, stopped to stand on my tip toes as a shoe landed before me. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as I danced and dodged around sneakers, flip flops, and foam paws. I heard a soft yelp.

My attention turned to Ethan as he collided with the floor, caught off-guard by a cosplayer's boot. He scrambled forward, unable to get to his feet. I was already half way to him, grabbed his arm when in reach. We bolted, the final stretch before us.

He grabbed me and pulled me back, my hair flying into the shoe that came down shortly after. Terror seized up in me.

My͘ ̴͏͞v͜͞i͟s͡͡i̴̵͞o̷͏n͘ ̡̕st̛͘͢ar̷te҉͏d to͢ ͘gl͡i̸̡͠t͟ch̶

I yelped as Ethan shoved me the rest of the way to the planter, and we scrambled out of sight. A soft giggle sounded somewhere, tickling my ear.

"Don't panic on me now, dammit. Ani. Ani! Focus!"

I let out a sob, tears starting to roll down my face. I looked up to see Ethan's tears as well. He knelt down beside me and pulled me close. I sobbed into his shoulder and returned the embrace.

We made it. We were safe.


	18. The Third Floor

We didn't have time for a breather.

Ethan picked me up as my breathing calmed down, and we hugged the wall next to the door. People were constantly passing by, but none seemed interested in the elevator.

We both jumped when the doors opened. People poured out, causing a ruckus. We managed to slip in along the edge, minding the gap between the floors. A few people filed in after. The lights flickered.

"Ah geez, that's creepy," a girl laughed. "Sure hope we don't get stuck."

"Don't even joke about that!" her friend squealed.

We stood perfectly still in the corner, praying they didn't look down. Both Beans were too preoccupied in their phones and conversation to notice us.

_Ding.... ding. Chrrzzt._

Everyone held their breath.

The doors slid open. The girls let out a nervous laugh and quickly left. Ethan was quick to follow, with me right behind. As I went to bound over the gap, the door started to slide closed. I squeaked in a panic, getting dragged along as I collapsed onto the floor. Ethan was quick to my side and pulled hard. We flew out to the floor, a sharp pain running down the side of my leg. I let out a hiss, grabbing it.  I could feel the blood seeping out.

Ethan picked me up and carried me out of sight as I tried to keep pressure on it. We were able to hide under a nearby table, boxes surrounding us. Once our eyes adjusted, we took stock.

I got the distinct impression the wound looked worse then it was. Ethan silently pulled out a small shard from his belt and went to a far corner of the table. He cut out a section of the tablecloth, then came back to clean up and bandage the wound.

My hands had smeared blood all over my leg, but the actual injury was little more then a shallow scrape along my calf. Still hurt to stand on, which meant Ethan had to help me move. I sat down to wait as Ethan cleaned himself up and looked out from our hiding spot.

"Holy shit!" he whispered. "We're real close! Looks like 310 is just down the hall!"

"Hope we have enough time to move with this bullshit," I muttered, putting a tad bit of pressure on my leg just to see how much it could stand. I would walk, but running was out of the question.

Ethan knelt next to me and furrowed his brow. "Why do you keep doing that?"

I gave him a confused look. He motioned to my right hand. When I looked down, I found it picking and tearing apart a corner of a paper. I hadn't even noticed.

"Nerves?"

He sighed and nodded in understanding. He helped me to my feet, though we both stumbled a bit. I ended up clinging to his side for a moment to regain my balance. Why did it feel like I had more weight? He straightened me up. Then, he led me in a run for the other side of the hall.

The Beans weren't nearly as numerous up here. Which made dodging feet easier, but the anxiety of possibly being Seen much, much more. I saw one Bean freeze, his eyes tracking us for a moment, right before we disappeared behind a cardboard cutout. My throat tightened.

"... Fucking hell, I really am going insane."

The Bean continued on his way, muttering all the while. I could feel Ethan shaking beside me.

"Are you okay?"

He looked over at me and nodded. "You?"

I nodded.

"Alright. I think we just need to go to the end of the hall that way, and we're there." He looked out around the hiding spot. "We still have an hour. We can take our time."

And take our time we did. My leg didn't let us go very far, and I kept having a weird twitch in it every so often. Ethan carried me for sections we didn't see any Beans, though we were both nervous about staying that slow for too long. As we got close to the door, we could hear Beans starting to come down the hall behind us. We managed to slip in under the door before any got too close.

The room was dim, and we huddled up in the corner. Human Beans started to pour in, talking in surprisingly hushed voices. Ethan kept a protective arm around me as we scanned the faces. Most were preoccupied, though I recognized them here and there from YouTube videos Seán had had me watch. My heart skipped a beat when I saw Mark. At the very least, we had someone to go to.

Then, lagging a tad behind, came one very upset looking Irishman. He kept his eyes towards the floor, and I pushed Ethan to move more. My fellow Borrower nervously started to wave his arms a little. I followed suit. I watched the Bean's shoulders stiffen. Then Seán's eyes locked with mine.

We both broke out into ridiculously relieved smiles, then Seán snapped his attention ahead of him. Ethan and I followed his gaze. No one was paying attention to us. Our human bean shifted a little along the wall, then sank down close to the corner. The hosts of the panel were starting to talk, covering up any noise Ethan and I might make. Ethan helped me to my feet, and at the sight, Seán went rigid, a bit of a hard look in his eyes. I shook my head and waved them both off. 

That only seemed to make Seán more worried, more--

_Angry._

Fear plummeted down my spine. Followed by dread, then a shot of electricity. My entire body convulsed. Ethan tried to keep hold of me, but I pushed him away, finally understanding what my nightmare just a few nights ago had been. The world glitched. My body felt as though it were being broken into shards. I bit back a pained squeal.

Anti's host didn't have to be Seán.


	19. Glitch

My mind was fracturing. I could feel motions through my body that I didn't mean to do. My entire world shifted and tensed, focused and blurred. It felt like every limb were being pulled in every direction. Ethan was still close to me, and I fought against the urge to pull out the stolen knife and attack him. A cackle started to bubble up from within me, but it was silenced as Ethan pinned my arms to my side, hand over my mouth. Had that been his choice? Was there more?

Suddenly we were moving, the world breaking and giggling and soaring by. My knife dug into something -  _someone?_  - and there were voices. So many voices. A slam that rang in my ears.

"Son of a bitch!"

I was falling, but my body seemed to correct itself all on its own. I could feel the world tearing into me, parts of my body cut into pieces that went around, space between its place and me.

"W̶h͟a̴t's t͜h̢e ͜matter?̡"

Was that my voice? I could feel my vocal cord rumbling, several inches in front of me. The green haze cleared for a moment. Ethan stood on guard, lost and confused. Seán pressed his good hand into his brace, glaring.

"Let her go," he growled.

My neck snapped, every broken bone crying out. But I still functioned, my head tilted too far to the side as it stared at the two.

"N̴o͜'

I braced myself, trying to find some sort of balance in the pain. Voices started to fade. The green haze returned.

"Ani!"

Ethan's voice snapped me out of the fog, though my body still wasn't mine. I gripped the sense of cohesion.

"Anti, yer fight's with me."

I pranced back a few paces as Seán got closer, looming over us. I tried to focus on his eyes.

My own hand held the knife to my throat.

"NO!"

Ethan barreled into me. All four hands were on the knife, struggling to take it. I could hear Seán cursing in the background. My foot connected to Ethan's stomach. He stumbled away, taking the knife with him. Anti hissed with my throat.

The pain, the breaking body, was disappearing.

I struggled against it as it struggled with Ethan, we had the knife back in short order. It wanted the throat, I wanted the knife gone. Seán rammed the table. My body stumbled back. The knife sank deep into my leg. We looked up.

I felt Anti's sharp toothed grin take over my face, the green haze encasing me for just one split second before it all fell away.

Right in time to see Seán's hand encase me in a fist.


	20. Return

I panicked, writhed, and sobbed.

Everything flew by in a blur, then stopped.

"Aos sí, 's just us, yer fine."

Arms pulled me close, and Ethan's voice managed to break through the panic.

"Hey, hey calm down, we're okay."

I heard a short string of words I didn't understand from further away. I stared up at Ethan's face, my breaths shallow. My thoughts kept breaking, and it felt like sections of my body were still glitching, even though the haze was gone. My vision flickered. Ethan kept talking, but I couldn't understand.

When did he get a towel. Was that my blood?

My thoughts keep skipping.

We're in the dark? I hear roaring outside.

The static whispers to me.

Ethan isn't walking, but we're moving? The rhythm feels familiar.

I need to catch my thoughts. They keep floating away.

I wake up.

The plane was silent. When had we gotten on? Ethan slept nearby, looking far more relaxed then I had seen him before. The open window showed the ocean reflecting the stars.

"Aos sí?"

The soft whisper made me look over my shoulder. Seán rested his head behind his arms, eyes just visible over his sleeves. We simply stared at each other for a long moment.

My eyes drifted to his unbraced hand. A bandage wrapped around his palm.

"'s not yer fault," he murmured in response to my unspoken regret. "It'll be hard ta come to terms with. You'll remember a lot. But it's not yer fault."

I let out a soft sigh and looked back to him. "Do you think it'll happen again?"

He looked away, a sorrowful expression knitted into his brow. After a moment, he met my gaze again. "Always does, one way or another."

We watched each other, at a loss for words. I stood and moved closer. Seán went still, unsure of what I intended.

I leaned against his arms and rested my forehead at the crest of his nose. After a moment, I felt him relax.

We stayed there for quite some time.

"Think we're going to be okay?" I asked quietly, not wanting to move.

"Think we're gunna be fine, aos sí," he murmured.

"Does it get easier to remember?"

"Yeah. And easier to fight."

There was nothing else to say. So we stayed there, eyes closed, as the world traveled silently below us.


	21. Epilogue

"Hey. Heeey. Heeeeeeey,"

I grumbled, waving off Ethan's hand from my shoulder. He didn't accept that and pulled the sheets off. I whined and curled up. He promptly hoisted me over his shoulder and started to walk out of our home.

"Noooo." I wiggled against his grip, not really wanting them to see me in nothing but a shirt and underwear.

"Shoulda woken up when I asked you-- ACK!"

We both toppled over as I shoved my weight back. I landed somewhat hard on my chin, but got up and dusted myself off. "You could at least let me put on pants."

Ethan stared up at me, then burst into laughter. "I mean, I guess I could."

\--

A little while later, I stepped off the button lift and sent it back down. I could hear Seán and Signe in the kitchen, rocking out to music. Ethan stepped off beside me, and we pushed open the door to the shelf.

A bell chimed in the kitchen.

"'s 'bout time ya got up."

"It's her fault!" Ethan replied, waving his arms in my direction. I shrugged helplessly. No point in denying it.

"Isn't it always?" Signe laughed from the kitchen.

We all met at the table, eggs and bacon spread out among us. Which mostly meant Signe and Seán had full plates, and Ethan and I picked what we needed. We discussed the day's plans which ranged from Seán's usual to Signe needing to shop. Ethan offered to join her - he hadn't gotten out of the house much since we arrived back in Brighton.

Without much to do on my own, I offered to take my usual spot as Seán did his recording.

I got myself comfortable as he set himself up. We both froze as his computer screen flickered green for a moment.

"Oh, fuck off, ya glitch," Seán scoffed.

I saw it move to the light. Heard the static in my ear. And promptly flipped it off.

It'd come back. It always did. And we'd be ready.

We always were.


End file.
